Don't think I want to live in a submarine. Unless it is the Yellow Submarine.

leshumanoides

it need a big, colorful graffiti on the outside wall

alakri

People who think a building needs to be 'Colorful' to be lively, should stay put in Disneyland. Labeling everything that is minimalistic in Nature or made in Concrete as 'depressive' is nonsensical gibberish.

Hercule Poirot

Very smart : when you're working in the kitchen the light is coming from behind you. The windoz looks out on a dark hague about one meter in front of you. The zenital light is only for ... the garden ! Sing-Sing looks like a friendly kindergarten compared to this.

miguel

great work but the photos are not good enough to please dezeen readers

It looks so cold to live in this house even in summer too.
If i were a dweller, i would feel i'm a prisoner.
I think the Japanese tend to like building house like that.

ya-el

its beutiful but so very sad
no connection to the life in the street - i guess you did not read any walkabilty reserch

roland berengena

I am amazed at the number of negative comments made about this residence. The worst one advocates graffiti all over the exterior concrete walls. Partly the designer is at fault, but mostly for presenting this project with photographs of the interiors shot on an overcast day. There are no strong shadows and this lack of sunshine in the interiors made many respondents think of the building as underground or underwater spaces. There are certainly windows or glass doors that would permit outside light to brighten up those interiors.

The other problem with the presentation is the lack of furnishings to help humanize the spaces. Anyone who has ever gone apartment or house hunting knows how lousy interiors look without furniture. An experienced real estate agent would never present a hot property without some jazzy decor to sell it.

Hercule Poirot

Imagine the kitchen space with bright sunlight: It will be even worse because the person at work will have to do it in his own dark shadow. Maybe Japanese housewives/-man don't have the same ideas on practical aspects of a building, but I wouldn't roll my sushi there. Not mentioning the dust : full concrete and a white lacquered or melamine kitchen furniture. They have a maid, that's for sure !
About the furniture : what the hall could you place in such an overwhelming environment ? An electric chair ?
Even art to bring some colour (if wanted) will be reduced to sculpture if you don't want to ruin the wall surfaces. Maybe they can put some flowers in the serial holes ? But it looks already like a columbarium now.

Fil

Concrete architecture isn't for everyone.

But it's for me.

Well done.

Lauren

this looks very Tadao Ando.. but a little more contemporary with the stark white room. love it.